The health and well-being of individual people and local communities is affected by a wide range of factors. These factors, described as ‘the causes of the causes’, can be outside of our control: such as gender or genetic make-up. Other factors exist which although are generally beyond the individual’s control, can be improved upon with support from organisations such as the Government, Local Authorities, and the NHS. These factors concern the environment, the economy (eg our ability to work), society, and health as a whole and are generally interconnected with one another as shown in the model below.
It is important for us to ensure that the health impacts of these determinants are explicitly considered when making decisions about them. The chapters in this section comprise End of Life Care and Safeguarding as well as the needs and outcomes of people who are at risk of or have been subjected to Accidents, Fuel Poverty, Violence and Extreme Weather.